1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a method and apparatuses for treating railroad ties by injecting a flowable-treating material through unused or unoccupied spike holes in railroad rail tie plates which anchor the bottom flange of a railroad rail to the wooden ties. In one embodiment of the invention, the apparatus includes a backpack unit including a tank and pump assembly secured to the back of a user by shoulder straps with a manually manipulated injector device insertable into an unused or unoccupied spike hole in a tie plate in a sealed relationship thereto. The injector or applicator includes a rigid tubular member having a nozzle and valve at the lower end, a T-handle at the upper end and a valve actuator associated with one of the handgrip areas of the T-handle with the T-handle also being connected with a flexible hose communicated with the supply tank and pump assembly thereby enabling a user to walk alongside a railroad rail and inject treating material through the unoccupied spike holes and between the upper surface of the wooden tie and the bottom surface of the tie plate for protecting the wooden tie from fungi and other conditions which cause decay of the wooden tie. In another embodiment of the invention, the treating apparatus is mounted on a pickup truck or other vehicle which can be driven alongside a pair of railroad rails with the vehicle including a pair of adjustable, collapsible and foldable booms supporting supply hoses interconnecting a supply tank and pump assembly with manually manipulated injectors.
2. Information Disclosure Statement
The concept of treating wooden ties by injecting a flowable treating material through the unused or unoccupied spike holes in railroad tie plates is disclosed in my prior Pat. No. 4,746,553 issued May 24, 1988 with the apparatus disclosed in that patent including a vehicle with flanged wheels to support the vehicle on the railroad rails and which operates effectively for its purposes but requires that the vehicle be removed from the rails, either by moving onto a siding or being manually removed from the railroad rails, when a train passes the site of treatment. Prior Pat. No. 4,738,878 issued Apr. 19, 1988 also discloses the method of treating the upper surface of wooden railroad ties by injecting a treating material into one or more unoccupied spike holes in rail supporting tie plates with the only apparatus disclosed including an injector element with a nozzle on the end thereof for engaging the spike hole in the tie plate. Neither of the above patents and the prior art cited in those patents disclose the method and apparatuses of this invention.